Candle in the Wind
by dazedkitten
Summary: short story. How would Hermione react if Harry Potter died? Sad, but i was in a sad mood when i wrote it. please r


Hermione stood by Harry's side as Madam Pomfrey waved an implement over him. Tears strayed down Hermione's face, and she made no effort to remove them. Looking down at Harry's face, Hermione realised that she loved him, with all her heart. His glasses- now broken, sitting on the bedside table; his cat-green eyes, his soot-and-dirt-covered face, his scrawny frame- somehow, he hadn't managed to grow past 5'8". Hermione sobbed as she looked towards Madam Pomfrey for her verdict. 

"I'm sorry, Hermione, I don't think he's going to make it through the night. There's nothing I can do." Madam Pomfrey turned to look at the young man in the bed, and sighed mightily. She turned away and walked from the room. Harry wouldn't be the only one to die today; so many people already had. Hermione grasped Harry's hand and sat in the chair adjacent to the bed. Gripping his hand as if it were her lifeline, Hermione cried herself to sleep.

When Hermione awoke, the hand she held was cold. Sobbing again, it was all she could do to sit up. Looking at Harry's face, Hermione wondered if he would ever know just how much she loved him. 

Hermione wiped the tearstains off her face, and stood up. She wavered a little, her head spinning. Harry wouldn't want her to mope around; he would want her to be happy. Hermione just wasn't sure if she could be happy without him. Kissing Harry on the mouth, cold as it was, Hermione tried to walk out of the room without looking back. 

At the door, she turned around. The tears welled up within her, but she swallowed them back down. She was sure that it wouldn't help her, but she couldn't give in to her grief just now. Striding from the room, she walked back to the Great Hall. 

All the students were in the room, and most of the teachers. Hermione noted one absence- Professor Snape wasn't in sight. Then she realised why- he was standing right behind her. Starting a little, she glared at him, then strode into the room. Walking to the teacher's table, she noted that Snape followed her every move. 

Well, a voice in her head said, you are going to the teacher's table... Hermione realised this too, but still felt a little creeped out by his movements just behind her. Reaching Dumbledor, Hermione fell into his arms. 

"Harry's dead..." was all that could be heard from among the sobs, and Dumbledor looked to McGonnagal to make the announcement. The entire student body looked startled, not knowing what to do. 

Hermione recovered herself, apologising to Dumbledor for crying on his robes. She looked up at the teachers, and they all looked sympathetic for her, even Snape. 

Hermione walked back down to her seat at the table. She sat, because she didn't know what else to do. Ron tried to make eye contact with her, but she just didn't feel that she could hold up the pretence that she wanted to go out with him. She felt hollowed out, dead inside. One glance at Ron made him go silent, and Hermione's eyes scoured the room. Not one gaze met hers. 

Hermione walked back to her room after she had poked at some food for an inarticulate amount of time. Pushing through the portrait, Hermione ran up the stairs to her room, collapsing on the bed in tears. She cried herself to sleep. 

In the morning, nothing looked better. That Voldemort was dead was of little consequence now that Harry was too. The sky was grey with clouds, and the drizzle suited Hermione's mood perfectly. 

Walking down the stairs, Hermione felt the eyes of people on her, but she kept her eyes on the floor. Ron came up to her and placed a hand on her back, but she shrugged it off. She turned and looked at Ron, and he realised that he had lost Hermione forever. She could never love him. 

Walking into the Great Hall half an hour early, Hermione was surprised to see someone else in the room. Piercing grey eyes looked up at her from a tear-stained, reddened face. Hermione walked over to her enemy and looked at him without saying anything. 

"Your best friend was killed. My father was too." Draco's voice was rough and ragged from crying; Hermione was surprised to see emotions like this from someone she thought immune to feeling. 

As the room filled with people, Hermione sat down opposite Draco. He looked surprised, but then returned to looking intently at the table. Hermione followed suit. 

A catch of song floated through Hermione's mind, and she sang it without realising. 

_"…The candle burned out long before/ the legend ever will…"_

Draco looked up at her, startled at the sound of song coming from her lips. Hermione smiled sadly and realised that this was probably the one person who could ever understand exactly what she was feeling. 

Days passed, as did weeks, and before long, the year was over, school dismissed, and Hermione graduated. She never understood why Harry had to die, but she accepted it eventually. 

She never did love again, though.

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Sad, I know; I watched A.I. and was in desperate need of writing a sad fic. Also inspired by 'Candle in the Wind', the beautiful song written by Elton John. Maybe in another life she would have found happiness, but in this metamorphosis she didn't. ^Sigh^ I hope I find happiness. One day…

Dazed*Kitten

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